It does look awesome in the photo but it was somewhat less so when it was anchored on station, considerably smaller than the ships it served to guide. The first image shows the crew on the forward deck. The adjacent white structure at the bow served to deflect waves washing over the deck but did little good with the largest waves. The pilot house windows in the second image were heavy-duty port holes that were far less likely for waves to break than wider windows. During a 1976 storm with 120 knot winds and 50 foot seas the lightship while on the Nantucket station dragged its 7000 pound anchor with a heavy 600 foot chain for 12 miles.

(The two cone-shape objects at to the left of the light structure are the foghorns with white covers on top of each. The black ball above the crew is displayed when the ship is at anchor.)